We get snow sometimes, usually over about 600 metres, and that always means closed mountain roads. Trouble is, where people are not accustomed to snow/ice on the roads, they don't realise just how out of control it can make your vehicle become. Its just the same with rain: if it comes after a long summer drought, the oil and road grease that suddenly gets wet is lethal, and the tailgaters are something to wonder at - if you aren't on the same bit of road.

But, rain, hail, snow or ice, nothing is as frightening as the cyclists-in-lycra: they have no idea at all about white lines, roundabouts and borders. I am sure they are all on drugs from the moment they board their flights out here. Pity we can't send them all to Cyprus instead.

You know, I was often too eager to get "something good", resulting in wild snapping of pretty much trivial stuff Its about gaining distance from that mindless shooting, about looking. So the break is quite good for me

Whilst in the States Slobodan struggles with icy survival, here in southern Europe, cradle of civilization, the world accelerates at unprecedented pace: yesterday brought you the new pocket Hasselblad 500 Series, with today marking the unveiling of the even newer Leica Matchbox Color, its unique selling feature being that you can be pretending to strike a light whilst actually sneaking a shot. Really hot.

Hi Rob, You've been putting some great cell shots on here. Wish I could see them a bit larger. How about making your max dimension 8 inches when you post 'em?

Hi Russ,

Thanks for the kind remark!

Maybe, though, that's why I keep 'em maxed at 600 pixels: could break up if I go larger, but I don't know for sure because I seldom see them large. Also, I find that I have to reduce them to around that same published size when I work on them: if I go larger I seem to lose the ability to keep the shapes controlled in my head, and have to scan a bit... Hope it's not tunnel vision creeping in on top of everything else!

At least we're not asking you to get one of those humongous MF (i.e., Moster Fotomachines) to give us 20 meter by 50 meter panoramas.

Lesson #1 from School of Hard Knocks: He who giveth an inch shall lose a ...

On to something completely different: I watched the opening scenes from No Country for Old Men last night - I always seemed to have missed them before (I didn't stay up to watch much of the rest because I'd caught that on several earlier attempts) - and I have to say, the early dawn shots are spectacular, especially in how they avoid all of that stlls photography obsession with maximum detail in shadows, etc. One shot in particular, of some broken-down posts with wires, blew the top of my head open. It was also amazing how pure black silhouettes of mountains can be so dramatic. Sometimes, huge DR isn't everyone's best friend. Trouble is, it's a discipline that seems to require a lot of early morning starts... can't cheat by using sunsets because the air ain't clean and you lose the effect of starkness. Leica M6 and Velvia 50, anyone?

I've remarked before that cinematographers often have a far more exciting take on landscape than any regular landscape shooter's work with which I'm familiar. There's a greater sense of dynamics, a williingness to use OTT framing ideas that seem to be anathema to stills people. As I mentioned, especially noticed last night was the use of absolute blacks, which currently cause great anxiety amongst some posters here on LuLa this weather.

Well, for better of for worse, this is the first effort with the new-old 2/35mm AIS Nikkor wide open at f2. As I said, for better or for worse. Not sure if that's hellish fall-off or just the subject... oh well, 'painterly' covers a lot of sins.

;-)

Rob C

P.S. This is strange: all the shots made with the cellphone open on clicking as enlarged images in the original space below the post. This new camera shot, for some reason I don't grasp, doesn't do that: it opens up in a separate window... could that be because it's a bit larger than normal for me? If so, it's back to 600 pixels over the picture!